João Graça, Lisa Roque, David Guedes, Lúcia Campos, Monica Truninger, Cristina Godinho and Markus Vinnari
Recent reviews and reports have highlighted the need for integrated, context-specific efforts to enable sustainable food transitions. This study aimed to identify pathways to…
Abstract
Purpose
Recent reviews and reports have highlighted the need for integrated, context-specific efforts to enable sustainable food transitions. This study aimed to identify pathways to promote healthier and more environmentally friendly food practices in school contexts, with a focus on increased plant-based eating.
Design/methodology/approach
The study used a systemic approach with data collected from relevant stakeholders in an EU country (Portugal) at diverse levels of influence in the school meals system (i.e. proximal, intermediate, distal; from end-consumers to food providers, market actors, civil society organizations, and policy and decision-makers). Data from individual interviews (N = 33) were subjected to thematic analysis.
Findings
Meat-centric cultural perceptions of a ‘proper meal’ can be a socio-emotional barrier for sustainable food transitions in schools. Main pathways identified to unlock these transitions included: (1) Levering orientations toward ethical and environmentally beneficial consumption; (2) Improving and increasing the offer of plant-based meals; and (3) Mobilizing local communities and society.
Originality/value
The current findings suggest that promoting healthier and more environmentally friendly food practices in schools requires systemic, integrated approaches which focus on food consumption, food provision, and the broader political and sociocultural environment.
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Keywords
Conflicting theoretical perspectives present radical innovation as originating either from the core or the periphery of a system. Studies tend to bridge this divide by way of…
Abstract
Conflicting theoretical perspectives present radical innovation as originating either from the core or the periphery of a system. Studies tend to bridge this divide by way of positions or roles. This paper proposes a process interface, where ideas from the core are radicalized on the periphery, inverting the established tendency of “tempering” of innovation. This approach realigns the primacy of the core in diffusing ideas and that of the periphery in reinforcing distinctiveness. Radicalization and tempering are interdependent, to the extent that the realization of one denotes other’s termination. Quantitative and qualitative evidence from the history of art lend support to the arguments, including breakthrough paintings, such as The Scream by Munch and Black Square by Malevitch. Radicalization is facilitated by simultaneously increasing differences and exchanges between core and periphery. The mobility of new ideas from the core to the periphery is likely to provoke resistance in a conservative environment. The collision of opposing social forces raises the stakes, making compromise less feasible or desirable.
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Nick Lin-Hi, Lisa Rothenhöfer and Igor Blumberg
The purpose of this paper is to investigate how Chinese factories can attract and retain blue-collar workers. While higher wages are typically considered to be an effective HR…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate how Chinese factories can attract and retain blue-collar workers. While higher wages are typically considered to be an effective HR instrument in this regard, this paper argues for the relevance of ethics in the HR domain. To this end, the paper develops and tests the concept of socially responsible blue-collar human resource management (SRBC-HRM).
Design/methodology/approach
In a scenario-based experiment, 296 blue-collar employees from a Chinese garment factory responded to questionnaires measuring their job choice determinants regarding a fictitious employer. In the scenarios, pay level (average vs above average) and SRBC-HRM (good vs poor) were manipulated.
Findings
The results revealed significantly positive relationships between SRBC-HRM and Chinese blue-collar workers’ job choice determinants (employer attractiveness, employer prestige and recommendation intentions), which were moderated by workers’ perceived importance of employer prestige. However, there was no significant effect of above-average pay on the three job choice determinants. Moreover, average pay in combination with good SRBC-HRM had stronger effects on job choice determinants than above-average pay in combination with poor SRBC-HRM.
Practical implications
The study highlights the economic relevance of the ethical treatment of employees in the manufacturing sector. In addition, the findings challenge the predominant managerial view that monetary rewards are the most important factor for instilling productive employee attitudes and intentions.
Social implications
Poor labor practices are still widespread in factories in emerging countries. By indicating that SRBC-HRM improves factories’ bottom line, the study provides a powerful rationale for factory managers to improve working conditions.
Originality/value
The present paper introduces the concept of SRBC-HRM specifically tailored to the context of blue-collar workers in emerging countries, who have received little attention in the literature. In addition, the findings demonstrate the economic relevance of SRBC-HRM.
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Fernanda Leão, Delfina Gomes and Garry D. Carnegie
The purpose of this paper is to study the portrayal of early accountants in the unfamiliar site of Portugal by examining Portuguese-language realist literature from the second…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to study the portrayal of early accountants in the unfamiliar site of Portugal by examining Portuguese-language realist literature from the second half of the nineteenth century.
Design/methodology/approach
Two popular literary works – Uma Família Inglesa (An English Family), written by Júlio Dinis and published in 1867, and Singularidades de uma Rapariga Loura (The Idiosyncrasies of a Young Blonde Woman), written by Eça de Queirós and published in 1873 – were examined through a qualitative content analysis.
Findings
The dimensions of the accounting stereotype discerned for the two early accounting practitioners featured in these works are portrayed as: modest; on-the-job trained practitioner; uncreative, conservative and unenergetic; honest financial manager; servant of the capitalist (i.e. merchant), and warm and sentimental. The accountant stereotype depicted from 1860s to 1870s period is similar to the conventional accountant stereotype, identified as the “traditional accountant” stereotype. Variations from this stereotype, however, are identified in the local, time-specific settings of Lisbon and Oporto.
Originality/value
The study’s portrayal of early accounting practitioners occurs during a period of transformation marked by liberalism. It augments an understanding of the image of early accounting practitioners, reflecting their social positioning at a time of significant social, economic, political and cultural changes, thereby contributing to an appreciation of the historical legacy of the accountant stereotype in continental Europe. Importantly, a taxonomy is proposed for content analysis that can be used and developed by future researchers.
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João Maranha, Paulo Jorge Nascimento, Tomaz Alexandre Calcerano, Cristóvão Silva, Stefanie Mueller and Samuel Moniz
This study provides an up-to-date review of additive manufacturing (AM) technologies and guidance for selecting the most appropriate ones for specific applications, taking into…
Abstract
Purpose
This study provides an up-to-date review of additive manufacturing (AM) technologies and guidance for selecting the most appropriate ones for specific applications, taking into account the main features, strengths, and limitations of the existing options.
Design/methodology/approach
A literature review on AM technologies was conducted to assess the current state-of-the-art. This was followed by a closer examination of different AM machines to gain a deeper insight into their main features and operational characteristics. The conclusions and data gathered were used to formulate a classification and decision-support framework.
Findings
The findings indicate the building blocks of the selection process for AM technologies. Furthermore, this work shows the suitability of the existing AM technologies for specific cases and points to opportunities for technological and decision-support improvements. Lastly, more standardization in AM would be beneficial for future research.
Practical implications
The proposed framework offers valuable support for decision-makers to select the most suitable AM technologies, as demonstrated through practical examples of its utilization. In addition, it can help researchers identify the limitations of AM by pinpointing applications where existing technologies fail to meet the requirements.
Originality/value
The study offers a novel classification and decision-support framework for selecting AM technologies, incorporating machine characteristics, process features, physical properties of printed parts, and costs as key features to evaluate the potential of AM. Additionally, it provides a deeper understanding of these features as well as the potential opportunities for AM and its impact on various industries.